Pulse September 2019 | Page 88

s n a P s h ot s u rv e y technology SeemS to Be evolvIng fASter And fASter, and so the June 2019 Snapshot Survey zeroed in on technology usage throughout the spa industry. This topic was last broached in February of 2018. 83 percent of all spa respondents utilize email confirmations and reminders, and usage was high among both day spas and hotel/resort spas. However, while 80 percent of day spa respondents utilize text confirmations, only 31 percent of hotel/resort respondents do. A surprising 11 percent of hotel/resort spas indicated they do not use any digital confirmations, iPads, What tech-related change has had the greatest impact on your spa? tablets, mobile apps, or online booking and retail systems whatsoever, nor do they allow guests to choose music or provide guests with charging stations. For guests, 28 percent of spas prohibited cell phone use in all areas of the spa; this number was slightly higher among day spas than hotel/resort spas. Accordingly, hotel/resort spas were more likely to prohibit cell phone use only in certain areas, with 60 percent indicating that they do this. 40 percent of hotel/resort spas permit non-verbal use of cellphones, while only 21 percent of day spa respondents allow it. Among all spa respondents, 36 percent agreed that guests were frequently frustrated by technology restrictions in the spa. However, only 11 percent “Confirmation emails. It is so much quicker and most people tend to use email or text now. Often people do not answer the phone or check their voicemails.” indicated that guests do not appreciate these restrictions—a disparity that’s indicative of spa-goers’ complex relationships with technology. On the employee side, 81 percent of spa respondents had a formal technology policy for employees, while only 20 percent of resource partners could say the same. Resource partners were laxer with technology usage in general: 46 percent of respondents allow talking on cell phones for personal matters, and 54 percent allow some degree of personal texting. n “Dedicated cell phone for the spa allowing us to check on all the different areas of the pool, spa and fitness areas.” “Sonos for wireless music selection.” “Tablet for remote off-site group bookings.” 86 PULSE ■ SEPtEmbEr 2019